Night Sleep Research Articles

Association of Breastfeeding Practices During the First 3 Months with Infant Sleep Trajectories: A Prospective Cohort Study

BackgroundBreastfeeding has numerous effects on maternal and child health. The effect of breastfeeding on infant sleep remains inconclusive. ObjectivesWe aimed to examine whether full breastfeeding (FBF) during the first 3 mo is associated with longitudinal infant sleep trajectories in their first 2 y of life. MethodsThe study was embedded in the Tongji Maternal and Child Health Cohort study. Information on infant feeding practices was collected at 3 mo of age, and maternal/child pairs were assigned to the FBF or the non-FBF group (including partially breastfeeding and exclusive formula feeding) on the basis of feeding practices during the first 3 mo of life. Sleep data of infants were obtained at 3, 6, 12, and 24 mo. Total, night, and day sleep trajectories across 3 to 24 mo were estimated with group-based models. Each sleep trajectory was differentiated on the basis of sleep duration at 3 mo (long/moderate/short) and the interval from 6 to 24 mo (moderate/short). Multinomial logistic regression was used to investigate the association of breastfeeding practices with infant sleep trajectories. ResultsAmong the 4056 infants studied, 2558 (63.1%) received FBF for 3 mo. When compared with FBF infants, non-FBF infants had shorter sleep duration at 3, 6, and 12 mo (P < 0.01). Non-FBF infants were more likely to experience Moderate-Short (OR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.61) and Short-Short (OR: 1.56; 95% CI: 1.12, 2.16) total sleep trajectories and more likely to experience Moderate-Short (OR: 1.84; 95% CI: 1.22, 2.77), and Short-Moderate (OR: 1.40; 95% CI: 1.06, 1.85) night sleep trajectories than FBF infants. ConclusionsFull breastfeeding for ≥3 mo were positively associated with longer infant sleep duration. Infants fully breastfed were more likely to experience better sleep trajectories characterized by longer duration in their first 2 y of life. Full breastfeeding may benefit infants through healthy sleep.

Overnight emotional inertia in relation to depressive symptomatology and subjective sleep quality.

Emotions show a certain degree of continuity during the day, a quality referred to as emotional inertia, and that is typically elevated in depression. Little is known however about the extent to which our emotional experiences may or may not also persist overnight. Do our feelings continue from evening to morning or not? And how is this related to depressive symptoms and sleep quality? In an experience sampling studies in healthy subjects (ns = 123) we investigated (1) to what extent people's mood, in terms of positive and negative affect, in the morning, after a night of sleep, can be predicted from their mood of the evening before, and whether this is moderated by (2) depressive symptom severity or (3) subjective sleep quality. Results showed that morning negative affect could be strongly predicted based on previous evening negative affect, whilst this carry-over effect was not observed for positive affect, indicating that negative affect shows a general tendency to persist overnight, while positive affect did not show such continuity. The overnight prediction of both negative and positive affect was not moderated by level of depressive symptoms, nor by subjective sleep quality.

Distinct multivariate structural brain profiles are related to variations in short- and long-delay memory consolidation across children and young adults

From early to middle childhood, brain regions that underlie memory consolidation undergo profound maturational changes. However, there is little empirical investigation that directly relates age-related differences in brain structural measures to memory consolidation processes. The present study examined memory consolidation of intentionally studied object-location associations after one night of sleep (short delay) and after two weeks (long delay) in normally developing 5-to-7-year-old children (n = 50) and young adults (n = 39). Behavioural differences in memory retention rate were related to structural brain measures. Our results showed that children, in comparison to young adults, retained correctly learnt object-location associations less robustly over short and long delay. Moreover, using partial least squares correlation method, a unique multivariate profile comprised of specific neocortical (prefrontal, parietal, and occipital), cerebellar, and hippocampal head and subfield structures in the body was found to be associated with variation in short-delay memory retention. A different multivariate profile comprised of a reduced set of brain structures, mainly consisting of neocortical (prefrontal, parietal, and occipital), hippocampal head, and selective hippocampal subfield structures (CA1–2 and subiculum) was associated with variation in long-delay memory retention. Taken together, the results suggest that multivariate structural pattern of unique sets of brain regions are related to variations in short- and long-delay memory consolidation across children and young adults.

LONELINESS AND SELF-RATED DAILY SLEEP QUALITY: RESULTS FROM THE EINSTEIN AGING STUDY

Abstract Poor sleep quality is a common problem and has profound physical and mental effects on older adults. Loneliness, another common and harmful condition for older adults, is associated with heightened levels of vigilance and feeling unsafe, which may contribute to poor sleep. Although some studies show that trait loneliness is related to compromised sleep, there are few studies examining whether and how day-to-day variations in loneliness relate to sleep quality. The current study aimed to examine within- and between-person associations of loneliness and daily self-rated sleep quality using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) approach. Community-dwelling participants (n=317, Mage=77 (range=70–90), 56% white) reported loneliness and self-rated sleep quality during a 14-day EMA study via mobile phones. Trait loneliness was measured once prior to EMA. Unexpectedly, multilevel modeling showed that the amount of loneliness experienced on a given day did not predict sleep quality, however lower levels of prior night sleep quality predicted elevated levels of loneliness (p &amp;lt; .01). Regarding the between-person association, individual differences in trait loneliness were not related to sleep quality, but differences in average levels of EMA loneliness were related to sleep quality, such that people who felt higher levels of loneliness on average during the 14 days reported worse quality of sleep during that time period than others (p &amp;lt; .0001). These results suggest that worse sleep quality may be a factor that increases loneliness, and may not be a consequence of loneliness. Potential benefits of using EMA loneliness in research of daily sleep quality in older adults will be discussed.

Prevalence of Mental Health Problems, Associated Factors, and Health-Related Quality of Life in Children with Long-Gap Esophageal Atresia in Sweden

BackgroundChildren with long-gap esophageal atresia (LGEA) face a high risk of digestive and respiratory morbidity, but their mental health outcomes have not been investigated. We aimed to identify the prevalence of mental health problems in children with LGEA, associated factors and health-related quality of life (HRQOL). MethodsTwenty-six children with LGEA aged 3–17 were recruited nationwide in Sweden. One of their parents and adolescents aged 11–17 completed information on the child's mental health (Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire), generic (PedsQL 4.0) and condition-specific HRQOL (EA-QOL). Parents gave information on current child symptomatology. Mental health level was determined using validated norms; abnormal≥90 percentile/borderline≥80 percentile/normal. Elevated levels were considered borderline/abnormal. Data were analyzed using descriptives, correlation and Mann-Whitney-U test. Significance level was p < 0.05. ResultsTwelve children with LGEA aged 3–17 (46%) had elevated scores of ≥1 mental health domain in parent-reports, whereas 2 adolescents (15%) in self-reports. In parent-reports, 31% of the children had elevated levels of peer relationship problems, with associated factors being child sex male (p = 0.037), airway infections (p = 0.002) and disturbed night sleep (p = 0.025). Similarly, 31% showed elevated levels of hyperactivity/inattention, and associated factors were male sex (p = 0.005), asthma (p = 0.028) and disturbed night sleep (p = 0.036). Elevated levels of emotional symptoms, seen in 20%, were related to swallowing difficulties (p = 0.038) and vomiting problems (p = 0.045). Mental health problems correlated negatively with many HRQOL domains (p < 0.05). ConclusionsChildren with LGEA risk mental health difficulties according to parent-reports, especially peer relationship problems and hyperactivity/inattention, with main risk factors being male sex, airway problems and sleep disturbances. This should be considered in follow-up care and research, particularly since their mental health problems may impair HRQOL. Levels of evidencePrognosis study, LEVEL II.

Sleep and seizure risk in epilepsy: bed and wake times are more important than sleep duration.

Sleep duration, sleep deprivation and the sleep-wake cycle are thought to play an important role in the generation of epileptic activity and may also influence seizure risk. Hence, people diagnosed with epilepsy are commonly asked to maintain consistent sleep routines. However, emerging evidence paints a more nuanced picture of the relationship between seizures and sleep, with bidirectional effects between changes in sleep and seizure risk in addition to modulation by sleep stages and transitions between stages. We conducted a longitudinal study investigating sleep parameters and self-reported seizure occurrence in an ambulatory at-home setting using mobile and wearable monitoring. Sixty subjects wore a Fitbit smartwatch for at least 28 days while reporting their seizure activity in a mobile app. Multiple sleep features were investigated, including duration, oversleep and undersleep, and sleep onset and offset times. Sleep features in participants with epilepsy were compared to a large (n = 37 921) representative population of Fitbit users, each with 28 days of data. For participants with at least 10 seizure days (n = 34), sleep features were analysed for significant changes prior to seizure days. A total of 4956 reported seizures (mean = 83, standard deviation = 130) and 30 485 recorded sleep nights (mean = 508, standard deviation = 445) were included in the study. There was a trend for participants with epilepsy to sleep longer than the general population, although this difference was not significant. Just 5 of 34 participants showed a significant difference in sleep duration the night before seizure days compared to seizure-free days. However, 14 of 34 subjects showed significant differences between their sleep onset (bed) and/or offset (wake) times before seizure occurrence. In contrast to previous studies, the current study found undersleeping was associated with a marginal 2% decrease in seizure risk in the following 48 h (P < 0.01). Nocturnal seizures were associated with both significantly longer sleep durations and increased risk of a seizure occurring in the following 48 h. Overall, the presented results demonstrated that day-to-day changes in sleep duration had a minimal effect on reported seizures, while patient-specific changes in bed and wake times were more important for identifying seizure risk the following day. Nocturnal seizures were the only factor that significantly increased the risk of seizures in the following 48 h on a group level. Wearables can be used to identify these sleep-seizure relationships and guide clinical recommendations or improve seizure forecasting algorithms.

Associations of siesta and total sleep duration with hypertension or cardiovascular diseases in middle‐aged and older adults

Whether the ratio of siesta duration in the total sleep duration was associated with the occurrence of hypertension or cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) was unclear. To explore the associations of siesta, and siesta ratio with hypertension or CVDs in middle-aged and older adults. This cohort study collected the data of 9247 middle-aged and older adults. The associations of siesta, and siesta ratio with hypertension were analyzed in 7619 participants while the associations of siesta, and siesta ratio with CVDs were analyzed in 8685 participants via univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis. Total sleep duration < 6 h (odd ratio [OR] = 1.168, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.023-1.335) and siesta ratios ≥ 0.4 (OR = 1.712, 95%CI: 1.129-2.594) were associated with increased risk of hypertension in middle-aged and older adults. Siesta ratio ≥ 0.4 was linked with higher risk of hypertension in males aged ≥ 60 years and total sleep duration < 6 h was correlated with elevated risk of hypertension in males < 60 years. The risk of CVDs was elevated in people with siesta duration < 0.5 h (OR = 2.053, 95%CI: 1.323-3.185). In females ≥60 years, the sleep duration at night < 6 h was associated with increased risk of CVDs. In females < 60 years, increased risk was observed in those with siesta duration < 0.5 h and sleep duration at night < 6 h. Short sleep duration or high siesta ratio were associated with higher risk of hypertension. Short siesta duration, sleep duration at night or total sleep duration were correlated with an elevated risk of CVDs.

The association of multidimensional sleep health with adiposity in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction

BackgroundThere are bi-directional relationships between sleep disturbances and obesity, both of which are prevalent in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). However, little is known about the sleep-obesity association in HFpEF. ObjectivesTo determine associations of multidimensional sleep health, night movement, sleep fragmentation, and sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) risk with overall and regional adiposity in HFpEF patients. MethodsMen and women with HFpEF (n = 49) were assessed via 14-day actigraphy, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Epworth Sleepiness Scale to derive multidimensional sleep health. SDB risk was assessed via Berlin Questionnaire. Body composition was measured using anthropometry; MRI quantification of epicardial, abdominal, liver, and thigh adipose tissue was performed in a subsample (n = 22). Spearman correlation (rs) and linear regression analyses (β coefficient) were used to estimate bivariate and age-adjusted associations. ResultsMultidimensional sleep health was inversely associated with BMI (rs = -0.50, p < .001; unadjusted: β = -4.00, 95%CI: -5.87, -2.13; age-adjusted: β = -2.48, 95%CI: -4.65, -0.30), thigh subcutaneous adipose tissue (rs = -0.50, p = .018; unadjusted: β = -36.95, 95%CI: -67.31, -6.59), and thigh intermuscular fat (age-adjusted: β = -0.24, 95%CI: -0.48, -0.01). Night movement and sleep fragmentation were associated with greater intermuscular thigh and lower liver fat. High SDB risk was associated with a higher visceral-to-subcutaneous ratio of abdominal adiposity and lower thigh adiposity. ConclusionsAdverse multidimensional sleep health is associated with higher adiposity measures in HFpEF patients. Further studies are needed to determine whether intervening on sleep could ameliorate excess adiposity or whether weight loss could improve sleep quality in HFpEF.

Assessment of glymphatic function in narcolepsy using DTI-ALPS index

IntroductionSleep is a modulator of glymphatic activity which is altered in various sleep disorders. Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS), rapid onset of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, cataplexy, disturbed night sleep with fragmentation. It is categorized into two types, type 1 (NT1) and type 2 (NT2) depending on the presence of cataplexy and/or absence of orexin. We sought for alterations in glymphatic activity in narcoleptic patients using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) along perivascular space (ALPS) index on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Material and methodsAdult patients diagnosed with NT1 or NT2 who had polysomnography (PSG) and MRI with DTI were included in the study. Sleep recording included Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) score, sleep latency during multiple sleep latency test (MSLT), sleep efficiency during night PSG, wake after sleep onset (WASO), REM sleep latency during PSG, percentage of non-REM (NREM), REM sleep and wakefulness during night PSG. DTI-ALPS index was calculated for each patient and age-sex matched healthy control(HC)s. ResultsThe study group was composed of 25 patients [F/M = 15/10, median age = 34 (29.5–44.5)], 14 with NT1 and 11 with NT2 disease. ESS, WASO and percentage of wakefulness were significantly higher in NT1 patients (p < 0.05). Mean DTI-ALPS was not significantly different neither between narcoleptic patients and HCs, nor between NT1 and NT2 patients (all, p > 0.05). However, DTI-ALPS was negatively correlated with WASO (r = −0.745, p = 0.013) and percentage of wakefulness (r = −0.837, p = 0.005) in NT1 patients. DTI-ALPS correlated negatively with percentage of N1 sleep (r = −0.781, p = 0.005) but positively with REM percentage (r = 0.618, p = 0.043) in NT2 patients. ConclusionIn this study, DTI-ALPS was not significantly different in narcoleptic patients than the HCs. However, the glymphatic index as assessed by DTI-ALPS correlated with PSG parameters; negatively with WASO, percentage of wakefulness in NT1, percentage of N1 sleep in NT2, and positively with REM sleep in NT2. A tendency for a reduction in DTI-ALPS in NT1 patients compared to both NT2 patients and HCs was also found. These findings might show the first evidence of an alteration of glymphatic activity, especially in NT1 patients, thus warrant further prospective studies in larger size of narcoleptic patient cohorts.

Eye Masks and Earplugs to Improve Night Sleep Duration in Nulliparas: A Randomized Trial.

Background Women experience significant sleep disruption throughout pregnancy. Lack of sleep during the last month of pregnancy is associated with longer labor, a higher rate of Cesarean births, gestational diabetes, hypertension, and preterm birth. Eye-mask and earplugs through sensory deprivation increase sleep duration and quality in patients in the intensive care environment but their impact at home or during pregnancy is not known. We sought to evaluate eye-mask and earplugs compared to sham/placebo headbands on night sleep duration in pregnancy. Materials and methods A randomized trial was performed in a university hospital in Malaysia. Nulliparas between 34 and 36 weeks of gestation with self-reported night sleep of fewer than six hours were randomized to the use of eye-mask and earplugs or "sham" headbands during night sleep (both introduced as sleep aids). Night sleep duration was measured through a wrist actigraphy monitor during non-intervention week one and intervention week two with the allocated sleep aid. Results Data from 56 participants were analyzed on an intention-to-treat basis. Mean night sleep duration increased in intervention week two compared to non-intervention week one in both trial arms, which were 279 ± 19 vs. 304 ± 19 minutes (mean increase of 25 minutes) p = <0.001 and 286 ± 21 vs. 302 ± 22 minutes (mean increase of 16 minutes) p = <0.001 for eye-masks-earplugs and headband respectively. However, the mean increase in night sleep duration across trial arms (p=0.13) was not significant. A higher proportion of participants in the eye-masks and earplugs arm had their night sleep duration increased by at least 30 minutes, 13/29 (45%) vs. 5/26 (19%), relative risk (RR) 2.3 (95% CI 1.0-5.6) p = 0.04, more likely to agree that they slept better 19/29 (66%) vs. 7/27 (26%), RR 2.2 (95% CI 1.1-4.6) p = 0.03, expressed higher satisfaction score with their sleep aid 7 (7.0-7.5) vs. 6 (5-7), p = 0.003 and had lower induction of labor rates 4/29 (14%) vs. 12/27 (44%), RR 0.3 (95%CI 0.1-0.8) p = 0.02. Conclusion Eye masks and earplugs use in nulliparas with short night sleep duration in late pregnancy, lengthen their night sleep duration over baseline. Sleep is reportedly better and maternal satisfaction is higher with eye masks and earplugs use.

The memory sources of dreams: serial awakenings across sleep stages and time of night.

Memories of waking-life events are incorporated into dreams, but their incorporation is not uniform across a night of sleep. This study aimed to elucidate ways in which such memory sources vary by sleep stage and time of night. Twenty healthy participants (11 F; 24.1 ± 5.7 years) spent a night in the laboratory and were awakened for dream collection approximately 12 times spread across early, middle, and late periods of sleep, while covering all stages of sleep (N1, N2, N3, REM). In the morning, participants identified and dated associated memories of waking-life events for each dream report, when possible. The incorporation of recent memory sources in dreams was more frequent in N1 and REM than in other sleep stages. The incorporation of distant memories from over a week ago, semantic memories not traceable to a single event, and anticipated future events remained stable throughout sleep. In contrast, the relative proportions of recent versus distant memory sources changed across the night, independently of sleep stage, with late-night dreams in all stages having relatively less recent and more remote memory sources than dreams earlier in the night. Qualitatively, dreams tended to repeat similar themes across the night and in different sleep stages. The present findings clarify the temporal course of memory incorporations in dreams, highlighting a specific connection between time of night and the temporal remoteness of memories. We discuss how dream content may, at least in part, reflect the mechanisms of sleep-dependent memory consolidation.

Infant motor development predicts the dynamics of movement during sleep.

The characteristics of infant sleep change over the first year. Generally, infants wake and move less at night as they grow older. However, acquisition of new motor skills leads to temporary increases in night waking and movement at night. Indeed, sleep-dependent movement at night is important for sensorimotor development. Nevertheless, little is known about how movement during sleep changes as infants accrue locomotor experience. The current study investigated whether infant sleep and movement during sleep were predicted by infants' walking experience. Seventy-eight infants wore an actigraph to measure physical activity during sleep. Parents reported when their infants first walked across a room >10 feet without stopping or falling. Infants in the midst of walking skill acquisition had worse sleep than an age-group estimate. Infants with more walk experience had more temporally sporadic movement during sleep and a steeper hourly increase in physical activity over the course of the night. Ongoing motor skill consolidation changes the characteristics of movement during sleep and may alter sleep state-dependent memory consolidation. We propose a model whereby changes in gross motor activity during night sleep reflect movement-dependent consolidation.

Intrinsically adhesive, conductive organohydrogel with high stretchable, moisture retention, anti-freezing and healable properties for monitoring of human motions and electrocardiogram

A novel self-adhesive conductive organohydrogel without catechol adhesive components is developed for long-term, continuous monitoring of human motions and electrocardiogram. The organohydrogel is achieved by covalent cross-linking polymerization of acrylamide, N-acryloylglycinamide, and reduced graphene oxide, followed by soaking into ethylene glycol-water mixture. The organohydrogel exhibits intrinsic adhesion to various substances, excellent healing ability of nearly 100% conductivity repair rate, long-lasting moisture retention (about 30 days), extreme temperature tolerance (–20–60 °C), stable conductivity and extraordinary mechanical properties with a maximum tensile strength of 300 kPa, high stretchability over 1700%, compressive stress over 5 MPa. This organohydrogel can adhere to human skin without other fixture for human motions monitoring, such as the bending of wrist, finger, elbow and knee, and throat actions. Moreover, the organohydrogel can achieve long-term, continuous monitoring of human ECG signals in various daily activities, such as a night of sleep, standing, walking, performing leg curls and leg presses, and using an elliptical machine. This research offers a new strategy to develop self-adhesive conductive organohydrogel for long-term, continuous, and imperceptible monitoring of human health signals.

Effects of Audio Brain Entrainment on Korean People with Mild Insomnia.

Sleep health has become an important healthy lifestyle. Research has shown that almost one-fifth of the Korean adult population does not have sufficient sleep. The lack of sleep is associated with significant medical, psychological, social, and economic issues. People are not only yearning for sufficient sleep but the quality of sleep as well. Usually, the obvious choice will be the use of pharmaceuticals however, these often have various side effects, and the lasting use of these medications could become a concern. Therefore, new non-drug alternatives are sought after. Audio brain entrainment is a procedure that modules neural activities by synchronizing brainwave frequency with pulse tones. By producing frequency tones for the deep sleep stage, it promotes a good night's sleep. In this paper, we developed a pillow integrated with the audio speakers that produce alpha and theta beats that should help improve sleep. Sleep polysomnography was performed on 10 people to compare the effects of the audio stimulus. Initial results showed a positive effect on sleep onset latency, indicating that sleep induction happened. This noninvasive stimulation technique can be a promising candidate for wearable bioelectronics medicine and further neuroscience research.

Sleep benefit in patients with Parkinson’s disease is associated with the dopamine transporter expression in putamen

PurposeSleep benefit (SB) is a well-known phenomenon in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD); however, the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate whether the SB phenomenon in PD patients is associated with dopamine transporter (DAT) expression levels in the striatum. MethodsThe data of 125 PD patients were collected and divided into SB (n = 61) and non-SB (nSB) groups (n = 54) depending on whether they had SB or not. DAT expression on both sides of the striatum in PD patients was measured using 2b-carbomethoxy-3b-(4-trimethylstannylphenyl) tropane (11C-CFT) positron emission tomography imaging. The clinical variables, sleep scores, and striatum 11C-CFT uptake index of PD patients between the SB and nSB groups were compared. The associations of clinical variables, sleep scores, and striatum 11C-CFT uptake index with the SB variable were analyzed using logistic regression analysis. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of the striatum 11C-CFT uptake index in distinguishing SB patients from nSB patients. ResultsThe tremor subtype ratio (P = 0.011), levodopa equivalent daily dose (LEDD) (P < 0.001), sleep efficiency score (P = 0.025), habitual sleep efficiency (P = 0.012), and night sleep duration (P = 0.005) in the SB group were significantly different from those in the nSB group. The 11C-CFT uptake index in both the contralateral and ipsilateral striata in the SB group was significantly higher than that in the nSB group (P < 0.05). The binary logistic regression showed that SB variables were significantly and independently associated with tremor subtype (P = 0.048), LEDD (P = 0.021), sleep duration at night (P = 0.035), 11C-CFT uptake index in the contralateral (P = 0.013) and ipsilateral (P = 0.019) putamen in PD patients after correction for important clinical confounders. ROC analysis showed that the 11C-CFT uptake index on the onset side of the putamen had a high capacity (AUC: 0.916) to distinguish SB patients from nSB patients with high sensitivity (83.33 %) and specificity (88.89 %). ConclusionDAT expression in the putamen was associated with the SB phenomenon in PD patients, and the putamen DAT expression level could predict the SB phenomenon in PD patients.

Determination of the most significant medical and social factors regarding disorders of the physical development of school students in the conditions of modern society

ABSTRACT. Physical development is an important criterion for children's health. During the period of children's growth, the action of micro and macro factors of society, which is changing, can have a significant impact on the formation of health and physical development. Therefore, the purpose of the work was to determine the medical and social factors related to violations of the physical development of schoolchildren in the conditions of modern society. Materials and methods. In accordance with the terms of the Declaration of Helsinki, an anonymous survey of students of a general secondary education institution in a large industrial city (376 schoolchildren) was conducted using a specially developed questionnaire that included questions about indicators of physical development (weight and height of the child), daily routine (including determining time spent on gadgets, spending free time), questions related to harmful habits and healthy lifestyle skills of schoolchildren, their physical activity, relationships in the family, as well as issues of self-assessment of one's own health and one's body (physical development). S. Kulbak's method was used to calculate the most significant medical and social factors influencing the formation of physical development. The results. It was established that the majority of schoolchildren had harmonious physical development (44.4% of students), disharmonious physical development was identified in 55.6% of schoolchildren, which was mainly due to body weight disorders (65.6%). The differences between the objective assessment (in accordance with the normative criteria of physical development) and the subjective assessment (by students) of one's own body as a result of physical development have been established. The most adequate to normative indicators is the self-esteem of children with excess body weight, and the most different - among students with low body weight, who in the vast majority of cases, evaluate their own body as "normal" (in 71.8% of cases). According to S. Kulbak's formula, among the calculated factors with the highest diagnostic coefficient of negative impact on physical development are: "material instability" as a reason for not following a healthy lifestyle (DC = - 10.0); lack of communication with parents on issues related to the state of health and the factors that shape it (DC = – 5.0); night sleep less than 6 hours (DC = – 5.0); lack of food in the educational institution during studies (DC = - 4.0); having experience using Vape, JUUL (DC = – 3.0); almost constant (more than 3-5 hours a day) computer use (DC = -5.0). Conclusions. It is advisable to use the identified features regarding the impact of medical and social factors on the physical development of school-age children for the introduction of preventive programs aimed at reducing the impact of negative factors, increasing the educational component of work with parents, as a criterion for early diagnosis of deviations in physical development.

Light exposure during development affects physiology of adults in Drosophila melanogaster.

Light is one of most important factors synchronizing organisms to day/night cycles in the environment. In Drosophila it is received through compound eyes, Hofbauer-Buchner eyelet, ocelli, using phospholipase C-dependent phototransduction and by deep brain photoreceptors, like Cryptochrome. Even a single light pulse during early life induces larval-time memory, which synchronizes the circadian clock and maintains daily rhythms in adult flies. In this study we investigated several processes in adult flies after maintaining their embryos, larvae and pupae in constant darkness (DD) until eclosion. We found that the lack of external light during development affects sleep time, by reduction of night sleep, and in effect shift to the daytime. However, disruption of internal CRY- dependent photoreception annuls this effect. We also observed changes in the expression of genes encoding neurotransmitters and their receptors between flies kept in different light regime. In addition, the lack of light during development results in decreasing size of mushroom bodies, involved in sleep regulation. Taking together, our results show that presence of light during early life plays a key role in brain development and affects adult behavior.

Night Sleep and Parental Bedtime Practices in Low-Risk Preterm and Full-Term Late Talkers.

Night sleep and parental bedtime practices have rarely been investigated in late talkers. This study aimed to explore: night sleep, parental bedtime practices, and their associations in late talkers as well as individual, socio-demographic, and socio-relational factors affecting them. Parents of 47 30-month-old late talkers, born low-risk preterm (n = 24) or full-term (n = 23), with an expressive vocabulary size ≤10th percentile measured by the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory Words and Sentences, and normal cognitive abilities measured by the Bayley Scales, completed the Infant Sleep Questionnaire, the Parental Interactive Bedtime Behaviour Scale, and the Parenting Stress Index Short Form. Results showed slight settling difficulties, night wakings, and frequent co-sleeping in late talkers. Encouraging autonomy practices were frequently used by parents, rather than active physical comforting ones. Recurrent settling difficulties were reported by parents who often applied encouraging autonomy practices, whereas greater night waking problems and frequent co-sleeping were reported by parents who often left their child crying. Low-risk preterm birth and mother's parenting stress predicted total sleep difficulties and night wakings; first-born, high maternal education level and mother's parenting stress predicted settling difficulties; mother's parenting stress was the only predictor for co-sleeping and leaving to cry. These findings have relevant implications for improving late talkers' night sleep and their parents' bedtime practices.

Pre-Diagnosis Sleep Status and Survival after a Diagnosis of Ovarian Cancer: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Objective: To explore if pre-diagnosis sleep status is associated with overall survival (OS) of ovarian cancer (OC). Methods: This is a prospective cohort study of 853 OC patients newly diagnosed between 2015 and 2020. Sleep status was measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Vital status of patients was obtained through active follow-up and linkage to medical records and cancer registry. The Cox proportional hazards regression model was utilized to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for aforementioned associations. Results: During the follow-up period (median: 37.57 months, interquartile: 25.00 to 50.17 months), 123 (18.39%) OC patients died. The HR (95%CI) for OS of OC was 2.13 (1.42−3.18) for sleeping after 22:00, compared with sleeping before 22:00; 2.43 (1.64−3.62) for poor sleep quality, compared to good sleep quality; 2.26 (1.37−3.72) for late bed-early rise and 1.93 (1.09−3.42) for late bed-late rise, compared with early bed-early rise; 0.40 (0.24−0.67) for night sleep duration of ≥7.5 h/day, compared with 7−7.5 h/day; 0.53 (0.29−0.98) for total sleep duration of ≥8 h/day, compared with 7.5−8 h/day. Further, the interaction effects were significant between residual lesions and wake-up time, night bedtime, sleep pattern, and between total sleep duration and menopausal status, parity. Additionally, there was a significant curvilinear association between PSQI score and OS (p nonlinear <0.05). Conclusions: Pre-diagnosis longer total and night sleep duration were associated with better OS, whereas later sleeping time, poor sleep quality, and bad sleep patterns were associated with poor OS among OC survivors.

Habitual night waking associates with dynamics of waking cortical theta power in infancy.

The implications of the substantial individual differences in infant sleep for early brain development remain unclear. Here, we examined whether night sleep quality relates to daytime brain activity, operationalized through measures of EEG theta power and its dynamic modulation, which have been previously linked to later cognitive development. For this longitudinal study, 76 typically developing infants were studied (age: 4-14 months, 166 individual study visits) over the course of 6months with one, two, three, or four lab visits. Habitual sleep was measured with a 7-day sleep diary and actigraphy, and the Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire. Twenty-channel EEG was recorded while infants watched multiple rounds of videos of women singing nursery rhymes; oscillatory power in the theta band was extracted. Key metrics were average theta across stimuli and the slope of change in theta within the first novel movie. Both objective and subjective sleep assessment methods showed a relationship between more night waking and higher overall theta power and reduced dynamic modulation of theta over the course of the novel video stimuli. These results may indicate altered learning and consolidation in infants with more disrupted night sleep, which may have implications for cognitive development.